Song of Orpheus
by RubberJam
Summary: Greece. Orpheus lies desolate over the death of his lover. And like any faithful demon would do, Malphas accompanies him to the underworld. A story based on Greek mythology, and one that tells of why the one you now know as Sebastian Michaelis takes the form he has.


Birdsong. Piping in my ears.

I open my eyes. He is lying in my lap, seemingly asleep. Eyelids flutter and he smiles slightly at me, mind befuddled with the fruit of Morpheus. He is innocent of the creature that holds him in its arms, and is blissfully ignorant of the events that transpired the night before.

Orpheus. That is his name, I remembered. The musician with otherworldly musical talent.

He sits up, eyes scanning my form as he blinks the last traces of sleep away. His slight build is clothed with a wedding chiton, though it is marked slightly by some grass stains. The lyre is to the side of him, glittering with morning dew. I pick it up and wipe it off with my feathered cloak. Orpheus frowns and his eyes darken as he recalls what happened last night.

"Eurydice…" he says quietly.

"Yes. She is gone." I reply, averting my gaze to the trees, where a flutter of black silk greets me. Thanatos, the dark mercenary of Hades.

"Oh, Zeus." Orpheus whimpers, collapsing to the morning-stained grass. "Oh, cruel destiny. What painful fate for us to be parted in death."

"Death is nothing but a part of life." I say simply. "All things come to an end."

"But it wasn't her time. Damn it, I should've looked after her better!" he cries, uprooting handfuls of grass, pounding the earth to release his beloved. "Hades!" he screams. "Bring her back! Return her to me!"

I watch silently, a witness to the musician's tuneless lament. Eventually, he stops, lying still. I assume that he has not the sense of mind nor the calm to ask me about my being here.

I pick the human up and drape him over my shoulder. He doesn't respond and I take it as permission to unfurl my wings and soar on currents back to the silent city.

As we fly over a shining river, I see that I have the aspect of a raven. Upon seeing this, I change into a slim, dark-haired youth. Of course, I keep the wings.

I take him back into his abode and rest him on his bed. It is a while until he has the strength to croak out a command for his lyre.

I hand it to him, and he plucks half-heartedly at a string. Even when emotionally depleted, his notes hold heartrending pain. I feel an echo of mine return to me.

He sets it aside and turns his head to watch the town come alive. I walk out and come back a few hours later to see that he is in the same position as before. Humans.

I clear my throat. "Orpheus, you cannot stay like this forever. You have to eat."

"Without her, life has no substance."

"Go for a walk." I say, albeit impatiently.

"Without her, life has no color."

"Go and wash yourself!"

His eyes flash. "Do not tell me what to do. I do not even know who you are."

I cross my arms. "That is not important. Get up and get your shit together, Orpheus."

"What I want to know is that why a complete stranger is in my bedroom and how I came to be here."

"You were flown. By this _very_ patient complete stranger." I tell him.

Orpheus sits up. "A servant of Hades?" springing up, he grabs my collar with renewed strength. "Tell me how I can get my Eurydice back." he pleads urgently.

"Impossible. You cannot bring the dead back. This I know for a fact." I swat him off like a peck of dust. "Azrael has her now."

"Azrael? Who is Azrael?"

I give him a pointed look. "You know him as Thanatos."

He gazes at me, his eyes sharpening by every second. Suddenly, the spark of life returns to them, and he seizes his lyre with passion and starts out the door.

"Where are you going? It is in the middle of summer, and this is Greece. Orpheus, nobody would come out even for your music. You will have an empty audience."

"But perhaps even Hades would have me." Orpheus grins wildly, spinning me around in a most absurd manner. "My dear stranger, spring is upon us!"

"It is summer." I reply stiffly. "Are you mad? You would appeal to the king of the underworld? You do not even know where he is."

"He," Orpheus retorts. "Is in the underworld. And are you not one of his servants? You can lead me to his gate."

"I do not even distinctly recall agreeing to this."

"You will." he takes hold of my shoulders and stares into my eyes, but he cannot mask the exhilaration he is feeling, for I feel it coming off him in waves.

"Or what?" I say calmly.

"Or I will hit you over the head with my wedding present!" He brandishes his lyre threateningly. "Come on. Fly me there." he holds his arms out.

I consider the options. It would be interesting to see this play out.

I take Orpheus' form and my wings spring open like parasols and propel us into the air. He laughs, and for a second, I think about reconsidering. I shouldn't even be meddling in his life. I should be keeping watch like the Archs told me to.

But I was never one for rules and orders. And so this is how, on a brilliant day of sunlight and shadows, I found myself on a quest to the Underworld with a lyre-wielding musician.


End file.
